6.6-magnitude earthquake strikes in Pacific off Papua New Guinea

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An international group warns such a quake can "generate local tsunamis"

The quake struck around 6 a.m. Sunday local time

It hit about 37 kilometers from Taron in eastern Papua New Guinea

A 6.6-magnitude earthquake struck early Sunday in the western Pacific off Papua New Guinea, the U.S. Geological Survey reported.

The tremor did not immediately prompt any tsunami warnings by the U.S. National Weather Service's Pacific Tsunami Warning Center or the Japan Meteorological Agency.

The Intergovernmental Oceanographic Commission Tsunami Programme, which is affiliated with the United Nations, likewise said historical data suggests there is "no destructive widespread tsunami threat."

"However, earthquakes of this size sometimes generate local tsunamis that can be destructive along coasts located within a hundred kilometers of the earthquake epicenter," the IOC said in a bulletin. "Authorities in the region of the epicenter should be aware of this possibility and take appropriate action."